A recent news flash from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) caught my eye: US life expectancy drops for the first time. In 2015, life expectancy at birth was 78.8 years for all Americans, a decrease of 0.1 year from 78.9 years in 2014. For as long as I can remember, life expectancy has been increasing. I had always attributed this to all the new medical advances. But now, suddenly our kids will not be expected to live as long as we will.
The question I’ve been pondering is why. With all our modern medical technology, why have we, as a race, now stopped living longer than those who came before us? The one reason that stands out in my mind is Obesity. The increase of obesity in all ages of our population from little kids to seniors, combined with a sedentary life style is bringing us down. There’s lots of blame to go around: The fast food industry, all the junk foods, the sugar consumption, the advertising, the list goes on. But, it all comes down to the choices we make. We are what we eat and we choose what we eat. The choice is ours.
Another reason for the decrease in life expectancy might be our health care system. Until a few years ago the US didn’t have a national health care plan. We were the only modern nation without national health care. The very poor were covered but the working poor and the much of the middle class couldn’t afford care and went without doctor visits, check-ups and preventative care, opting for the occasional trip to the ER when they got too sick. So a few years ago millions were able to get medical care for the first time, and this just might improve our national average life expectancy. Whatever your political persuasion, don’t let this life saving care disappear without a new replacement.
Another reason for our national declining life expectancy might be all the illegal drugs we consume. Man, there’s a lot of people out there doing drugs. We’ve got to be careful. And now our whole West Coast is pot-friendly. I guess the marijuana triggers the munchies which will bring on obesity, contributing to heart disease and diabetes, sending people into the health care system and possibly an early death. Again, the choice is ours to make so let’s decide right now to have long and healthy lives.
